Finger-protecting shield



Jan. 23, 1951 8. SWARIN 2,538,889

FINGER-PROTECTING SHIELD Filed Aug. 51, 1950 INVENTOR: Sylvia S war/n,

ATTORNEY.

Patented Jan. 23, i951 'ruso s'rA'rEs ram orries FINGER-PROTECTINGSHIELD Sylvia Swarin, Detroit, Mich. Application August 31, 1950, SerialNo. 182,558

. 1 My invention is of a kind most needed by housewives, cooks inrestaurants, etc., its purpose being to provide an appliance for theprotection of fingers of a person using a hand-grater in shreddingvegetables or similar objects. It is a well known fact that in thecourse of such an operation the surface of the fingers holding theobject to be grated may be cut or abraded by a frictional contact withsaid grater. Another purpose of my improvement is to provide suchshields in such an arrangement and so connected to each other that theymay be quickly applied for use and just as easily taken off. A furtherobject of my invention is to provide an appliance so constructed andmade of such a material that it may he quickly rinsed without danger ofdeterioration or discoloration.

I shall now describe my improvement with reference to the accompanyindrawings, in

which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of my shields as they are fitted over thefingers of a person holding an object to be grated;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of my shields alone;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged top elevational view of two pairs of individualshields joined to each other;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on line 44 of Fig. 3.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

According to my concept, the appliance is to be preferably made of asuitable plasticmaterial, said appliance including individual shieldsfor each finger of the hand includin the thumb. This arrangement isdesirable in view of the fact that all fingers and the thumb are usuallyemployed in holding an object to be grated, as best shown in Fig. 1where the thumb I is opposed to the fingers marked H in holding anobject [2. It will be noted that the outer joints of the fingers assume,during the grating operation, a position parallel to the plane of thegrating. It is in this position that the fingers are most likely to beinjured, and it is for this reason that the outer joints of the fingersand the joints adjoinin them are to be covered by my shields.

The shields come in pairs to fit the outer joint of each fingerincluding the nail and also the intermediate joint of each finger, asshown in Fig; 1. The thumb, it will be noted, requires but a singleshield. Each single shield, generally indicated by numeral [3, has theform of a substantially circular band which is relatively broad where itis to fit over the top of the finger, this part of the ring being markedl4. On the under- 4. Claims. (of. 2-21) side each ring is split, the endmembers i 5 of said ring tapering in width where they approach eachother. A modified species, shown in Fig. 4, shows the top portion Masomewhat thicker while the end portions are thin. This constructionimparts to the shields sufficient flexibility so that they automaticallyadjust themselves in embracing fingers of varied dimensions. It will befurther noted that shields [5 of each individual pair thereof are joinedby a connecting strip !6, which strip ought to be flexible enough topermit natural bending of individual fingers so that the top joint ofeach finger may assume a position at an angle with respect to its middlejoint. The top surface of member H3 is best corrugated to lessen itsfrictional area on contact with the grater. In order that eachindividual pair of the shield may be kept in alinement with the otherpairs, I have joined said pairs by means of flexible cross-bands I1 andI8, the bands, which may be made of a suitable textile or preferably ofa pliant plastic material, fitting into slots IS in the sides of eachshield in the top portion thereof and fitting under said top portion, asbest shown in Fig. 4. This arrangement permits a shifting of the shieldslaterally with respect to each other, but keeps them in alinement forready use. When applied to the fingers the individual pairs of shieldsmay be spread apart or brought closer together simply by the movement ofthe fingers away from or towards each other.

It will be understood that I do not want to restrict myself to anyspecific material out of which the shields are to be made. It will bealso understood that some changes in the design of the individualshields may be made Without departing from the inventive principledisclosed herein.

What I, therefore, Wish to claim is as follows:

1. An appliance of the kind described, said appliance includin aplurality of pairs of ringshaped shields, a single pair to fit over asingle finger of a hand, each pair comprising a shield for the outerjoint of a finger, a shield for the middle joint of the finger, and aflexible strip extending rearwardly of the first-named shield andconnecting it with the shield over the middle joint, and band meanconnecting the plurality of shields laterally, the shields being adaptedto slide lengthwise over said band.

2. An appliance of the kind described, said appliance comprisin aplurality of band-like members alined laterally, the indivdual membersbeing adapted to embrace individual fingers Of a hand, each member beingsplit for a yielding adjust 3 ment to the ize of the respective finger,and band means connecting the individual members laterally.

3. An appliance of the kind described, said appliance including aplurality of pairs of ringshaped shields, each pair including a shieldfor the outer joint of a finger and a shield for the middle joint ofsaid finger, the two shields being connected by a flexible strip runningfrom the first-named shield rearwardly to the last-named shield of apair, each ring including a solid thick portion to fit over the top of afinger and being split laterally on the underside, the ends of the ringtapering in width and thickness, a single ring shield for the thumb, andband means connecting the shields laterally for the sliding movement ofthe shields on said band means.

4. A band-like shield of solid material to embrace the thumb of the handand a pair of similar shields for each other finger of the hand, one ofthe shields in a pair to fit over the outer joint of the finger, theother shield of the pair to fit over the middle joint of the finger, allthe shields being split laterally for adjustment to the thickness of therespective fingers and all the shields having a thickened mid-portionwhile the end portions thereof taper in width and thickness, and bandmeans connecting said shields laterally.

SYLVIA SWARIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 69,258 Sechrist Sept. 24, 1867241,964 Glidden May 24, 1881 852,972 Mackay May 7, 1907 883,761 Tayloret a1 Apr. 7, 1908

